Chapter 527: Awakening, Awakening, and Awakening Again

“Damn it, I still can’t do anything about it...”

Inside the stone house, Xu Xiaoshou gave up struggling. This forced anger and murderous intent clearly weren't the prerequisites for activating the passive state skill "Swallowing Mountains and Rivers." But then again, it made sense. If passive skills could be freely activated or deactivated, they would truly change their fundamental nature and become active skills, wouldn’t they?

“It should only activate unconsciously during combat, when emotions shift,” he mused. “Then, as the battle progresses, momentum would continuously build, culminating in a focused gaze, a killing blow!”

Xu Xiaoshou pondered. He felt a strong sensation just thinking about it.

So powerful! The sight of that colossal giant in the illusion, instantly obliterating everything with its gaze, was truly exhilarating! If he could achieve that effect... No, he didn't need to achieve exactly that. Even if it was only half, he estimated the passive points from onlookers would come flooding in, right?

Although this "Swallowing Mountains and Rivers" passive skill couldn't constantly provide passive effects like extended passive skills, once he entered combat, the accumulating momentum would likely...

“Be unstoppable!”

“And it felt incredibly cool!”

Xu Xiaoshou clenched his fist slightly, interrupting his thoughts, and then set aside this passive skill. For this type of state-based passive skill, reaching the Grandmaster level was sufficient. The rest would depend on how it unconsciously manifested in battle, disrupting enemy rhythm unexpectedly.

“So...”

He glanced at the bottom of the information bar.

“Passive Points: 105582.”

“Just over 105,000 passive points left...”

Xu Xiaoshou fiddled with a small stone, planning to use all his remaining passive points on the "Awakening Pool."

“So, who should I awaken?”

He cast a glance at "Swallowing Mountains and Rivers." Clearly, this state-based passive skill did not have an awakening function. Which meant the choice for awakening passive skills still fell only on the extended passive skills.

“'Stealth,' and 'Transformation'...”

Xu Xiaoshou temporarily didn't consider the other passive skills. After all, only these two skills seemed to be of great use at the moment.

“'Stealth' it is!”

After weighing his options, Xu Xiaoshou decided to stick with his initial intention and give the awakening opportunity to the highly practical "Stealth." Though "Transformation" was good, firstly, the skill was new, and he hadn't yet developed better uses for it. Secondly, Xu Xiaoshou couldn't quite figure out what kind of awakening effect it might have. Perhaps it would just evolve from 'Thirty-Six Transformations' to 'Seventy-Two Transformations.' That would be terrible; it would be like pointlessly wasting a very practical awakening opportunity.

“Stealth!”

After locking in his target, Xu Xiaoshou began exchanging for an Awakening Stone, binding the extended passive skill to it, and tossing it into the Awakening Pool.

Xu Xiaoshou: “...”

Three consecutive failures right off the bat. Clearly, he had pretty much used up all his good luck earlier. He calmed himself, took a deep breath, and walked out of the stone house, deciding to find a different auspicious spot that hadn't yet been drained of its luck by him.

“Xu Xiaoshou?”

Seeing Xu Xiaoshou emerge from the stone house, Mu Zixi and the others felt a jolt and quickly stood up.

“It’s nothing, you all continue with your cultivation, don’t mind me.” Xu Xiaoshou's mind was completely elsewhere. “I just need some alone time...”

He walked straight to a flat area, punched the ground, and buried himself in the soil.

Mu Zixi: “...”Yu Zhiwen: “...”Xu Xiaoji: “...”

“Received astonishment, Passive Points, 2.”“Received fear, Passive Points, 1.”

Xu Xiaoji curled himself into a ball, burying his head between his knees, adopting an 'out of sight, out of mind' approach. Indeed, this was a demon; he was so ruthless he'd even bury himself alive...

Yu Zhiwen, however, stared blankly. “He’s always like this?” She turned to Mu Zixi and asked, feeling like she was seeing another side of Xu Xiaoshou. A bit comical.

“Don’t mind him, Xu Xiaoshou has always been a nutcase,” Mu Zixi waved dismissively. Although this situation always felt incredible every time she saw it, she’d become immune to it after seeing it so many times. The discomfort, confusion, and urge to complain had all significantly diminished.

Yu Zhiwen was speechless for a moment. She looked at the spot where Xu Xiaoshou had buried himself alive, intending to sit down and cultivate. But she didn't dare. What if, while cultivating, the ground exploded again, shattering the elemental realm space, disrupting the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, and causing her to suffer qi deviation?

“Sigh.” Mu Zixi, observing Yu Zhiwen's dazed expression, suddenly leaned closer with interest and asked, “How did you and Xu Xiaoshou... meet? Why does it feel like your relationship is very close after not seeing each other for a while?”

Yu Zhiwen snapped out of her daze, her pretty face flushing. “In the White Cave, we met... Oh, no. Our first meeting must have been in your Spirit Palace. I saw you then too,” she said, counting on her fingers.

Mu Zixi tilted her head in thought for a moment, then nodded. “Really?”

“Yes.”

“But back then, you didn’t talk that much, did you?” Mu Zixi’s eyes widened. “What’s your relationship?”

“I...” Yu Zhiwen’s ears instantly burned. How could she not understand the girl’s implication? But... “Xu Xiaoshou and I aren’t involved in the way you’re thinking; we’re just ordinary friends,” she stated firmly.

“I don’t believe it.” Mu Zixi made a pained expression. “I’ve never seen him talk so much with any other girl besides me. It must be because you’re too pretty, and he fancies you!”

Yu Zhiwen immediately clutched her dress, her mind going blank with a buzzing sound. F-fancies? This, this, this...

“No, it’s not that. It’s not like that...”

“You’re flustered,” Mu Zixi smiled, then suddenly composed herself and whispered, “If he doesn’t like you, then... do *you* like him?”

“I!” How could Yu Zhiwen handle a situation like this? She couldn't speak coherently for a moment. Just Xu Xiaoshou was already so difficult to talk to. Why was his junior sister also so sharp-tongued, sentence by sentence?

Her thoughts suddenly drifted, and Yu Zhiwen imagined Xu Xiaoshou leading her to herd sheep on a vast prairie. If life could be like that, how wonderful it would be...

Abruptly, the scene broke. Her master’s stern and profound face appeared, beneath the solemn and formidable main hall of the Holy Divine Temple. The illusion instantly shattered. Yu Zhiwen’s pretty face stiffened, and her expression returned to normal.

“It’s impossible for him and me. I have my own mission, and we’re destined not to be together.”

“So that means, if you didn’t have a mission, you would want to be with Xu Xiaoshou?” Mu Zixi keenly caught the blind spot.

Yu Zhiwen let out a small laugh and retorted, “Also?”

Now it was Mu Zixi’s turn to be embarrassed. Her face flushed, and she stammered, “You, you haven’t answered my question yet!”

“No, I wouldn’t.” Yu Zhiwen lowered her hand, her gaze drifting into the distance. “I actually hoped Xu Xiaoshou could also join the Holy Divine Temple. His aptitude and strength are completely sufficient. I used to harbor that wish, but now...” Looking at the guy who had buried himself alive, Yu Zhiwen smiled faintly, “It’s a bit difficult.”

“Not a bit, it’s impossible,” Mu Zixi asserted.

“How so?” Yu Zhiwen couldn't help but glance sideways.

Mu Zixi also gazed at Xu Xiaoshou’s location, letting out a deep sigh. “He’s not that kind of person. I’ve been with him for a long time. From the first time I met him in the outer court of the Tiansang Spirit Palace, he was already...” As the young girl spoke, her expression stiffened. Whenever she recalled their first meeting, she couldn't help but want to complain. Back then, Xu Xiaoshou was lecturing his opponent whom he'd sent flying, taking up time. She, as a substitute referee, went to call him into the arena. After introducing herself, his reply was...

“Hello, goodbye!”

“Hmph...”

“How annoying!” As Mu Zixi thought about it, she clenched her little fist tightly. At that moment, she wanted to punch that annoying, impolite guy right off his feet. But clearly, Xu Xiaoshou wasn't someone anyone could just punch away. At least, the subsequent series of battles showed her this guy's truly tenacious vitality and willpower!

“He doesn’t like being constrained.” Mu Zixi shook her head gently, a trace of admiration in her eyes. “Do you know? When he was in the Spirit Palace’s outer court, he won the 'Wind and Cloud Hegemony' championship, but the higher-ups, bound by strict rules, wouldn't let him enter the inner court. But that guy forced his way into the inner court purely by his own strength. When the Heavenly Profound Gate of the inner court opened, for that secret realm trial you saw, he was the only outer court disciple in Spirit Palace history to qualify for entry. And...” Mu Zixi said, turning back, and with a wave of her small fist, declared, “He even forcibly blew up the Heavenly Profound Gate!”

Yu Zhiwen raised an eyebrow. “Blew up?”

“Yes.” Mu Zixi nodded, then suddenly smiled. “You might want to bring Xu Xiaoshou into your Holy Divine Temple now, but once you truly understand him, that thought won’t occur to you again...”

“Oh?” Yu Zhiwen was surprised. “Why?”

Mu Zixi thought about the countless explosions Xu Xiaoshou had caused in the Spirit Palace, secretly amused, and offered no explanation. She only sighed, saying:

“The outer court couldn’t hold him, the Heavenly Profound Gate couldn’t hold him, and neither could the Spirit Palace. Even after leaving the Spirit Palace, whether it was the City Lord’s Mansion, Tiansang City, or even Tiansang Commandery... None of them could hold him! Even this White Cave...”

“Can’t hold him either?” Yu Zhiwen finished with a laugh.

Mu Zixi turned back, also amused. “Not just the White Cave, I think even your Holy Divine Temple wouldn’t be able to hold him, nor would it be able to withstand him! Do you know he calls himself ‘Xu the Savage Beast’?” The young girl said, rolling her eyes, “Although I really want to complain about that, well... a savage beast doesn’t like cages.”

Yu Zhiwen’s smile froze. “I’m not trying to trap him. Joining the Holy Divine Temple would give him a broader platform, allowing him to develop better, so there’s no talk of a cage,” she explained.

“Xu Xiaoshou doesn’t need anyone to give him a platform.” Mu Zixi had developed a blind trust in her senior brother. Perhaps to others, this guy who buried himself alive had always had Elder Sang’s help along the way. But she knew better. Before Xu Xiaoshou even met Elder Sang, he was already capable of fighting for everything he wanted with his own hands. In fact, she could completely sense it. For Xu Xiaoshou, Elder Sang was perhaps less like a master and more like a constraint. This constraint wasn't a negative one. Mu Zixi wasn't a fool; she could see many things clearly. And some things she could see, would her old master not be able to see?

“Perhaps Master was just afraid Xu Xiaoshou would develop too quickly and attract unnecessary trouble, so he was willing to be the big flag behind him. That way, others would mistakenly believe that everything in Xu Xiaoshou’s growth was cultivated by him. So, in the end, the focus of external attention could all be shifted to Master...” As Mu Zixi thought, her mood suddenly dropped. “Just like why he ostentatiously held a master-disciple ceremony for me, but for Xu Xiaoshou, he only taught him privately. He didn’t even grant him the title of master and disciple...”

At that time, Mu Zixi had thought it was Elder Sang’s favoritism towards her. But looking back at everything that had happened, how could she not see that this was clearly favoritism towards Xu Xiaoshou!

“Constraint...”

“Perhaps with this kind of constraint, Xu Xiaoshou wouldn't go too far astray, to the point of no return!”

“What’s wrong?” Yu Zhiwen asked, seeing Mu Zixi’s sudden dip in mood.

“Nothing.” The young girl was only sad for a little while before her smile returned. She couldn’t compare to Xu Xiaoshou. She had realized this fact a long time ago. The only way she seemed able to keep up with her senior brother's pace...

“Yes, it’s me.” In her mind, the alluring and ethereal female voice reappeared.

Mu Zixi pouted and cursed inwardly, “Shut up, I’m not letting you out!”

The voice fell silent. The air grew quiet for a while.

Yu Zhiwen looked at Mu Zixi’s distracted expression and smiled, “It’s clear you’re the one who understands Xu Xiaoshou the most.”

“Mm.” Mu Zixi admitted it without hesitation.

“You like him?” Yu Zhiwen suddenly leaned in.

“Mm.” Mu Zixi nodded unconsciously, then suddenly snapped back to reality, flushing with anger. “Ah! No, you’re tricking me! Did you learn that from Xu Xiaoshou? You’re learning bad habits instead of good ones!”

A hint of sadness flashed in Yu Zhiwen’s eyes, but it quickly returned to calm, and she chuckled, “It’s so obvious, who can’t tell?”

“I...” Mu Zixi’s face instantly burned red, but then she seemed to think of something, her small face falling into a pained, wronged expression. “He won’t like me.”

“Why?”

“Because Xu Xiaoshou, he doesn’t like small ones...”

Yu Zhiwen’s expression immediately froze. For a moment, she couldn’t quite grasp what Mu Zixi meant by “small,” until she saw the girl in front of her looking at her directly with burning eyes. She took a few quick steps back, hugging her chest, startled, her fair neck turning pink.

“You...”

“What do you usually eat for your three meals, do you eat?” Mu Zixi leaned closer, cautiously, as if fearing others might hear, and whispered her question.

“I...” Yu Zhiwen was overcome with embarrassment. How could this senior and junior sibling pair be so bizarre? “I don’t eat...”

“Impossible!” Mu Zixi said, her face full of disbelief. “If you don’t eat, how did you grow up?” Her gaze slid downwards.

Yu Zhiwen gripped her dress tightly, so embarrassed she nearly wanted to find a crack in the ground to crawl into. But seeing the earnest expression on the girl’s face... How could she refuse to answer? She couldn't refuse!

“It’s... natural...”

“Ugh!” Upon hearing this, Mu Zixi’s eyes widened, and she clutched her own uncomfortable chest, feeling as if she had received a billion critical hits, instantly losing all desire to continue asking questions.

“Are, are you alright?” Yu Zhiwen was startled and quickly stepped forward to support her.

But as soon as Mu Zixi looked up at the girl, she felt an overwhelming sense of pressure, as if she were about to collapse. She covered her face, flung the other’s hand away, and ran off whimpering.

“I can help you...” In her mind, the teasing female voice spoke again.

“Shut up!” Mu Zixi, a mix of shame and anger, roared inwardly, then found a large rock to hide behind, out of Yu Zhiwen’s sight.

“Alright, I won’t say anything then.”

Mu Zixi suddenly froze. “Wait!”

“What did you just say?”

“Hm? Didn’t you tell me to shut up?” the female voice chirped teasingly.

“Not that sentence, the one before...” Mu Zixi tapped her index finger, asking timidly.

“I can help you?”

“How?” she asked urgently, as if the sky falling wouldn't be as important as this matter.

“First, you need to know that we are originally one body. I merely hid because I was injured when I was young, which is why you appeared. So, as long as you fully accept me...”

“Impossible!” Mu Zixi instantly sobered up, clutching the large rock in front of her tightly, as if holding onto something irreplaceable. “I won’t let you steal Xu Xiaoshou!”

Her mind fell completely silent. The next second.

“Ugh!” Mu Zixi clutched her head, as if suffering intense pain, her whole body trembling, sweat pouring down. “Even if you punish me, it’s impossible!” she retorted stubbornly.

“Ugh!”

Beneath the ground.

“Received a curse, Passive Points, 1.”“Received a curse, Passive Points, 1.”

“Argh——” Xu Xiaoshou was furious. He almost burst out to settle scores with his junior sister. “At such a critical moment, can't you little girl restrain yourself a bit? Why do you hit me with a wave of curses before each awakening attempt? How can I possibly succeed like this? My luck is completely cursed away by you!”

“Hoo, hoo, hoo...”

After waiting quietly for a while, Xu Xiaoshou decided not to change his location. Even if it meant fighting to the death today, he had to awaken this passive skill.

But... “This is the seventh time!”

Xu Xiaoshou felt like crying but had no tears. Although he had always set aside 100,000 passive points for awakening attempts, which time before had he not succeeded in awakening before reaching 100,000, or even at 40,000 or 50,000? This time, he wouldn't be breaking his record by using 100,000 points without success, would he?

“Don’t mess with me, I can’t take it...” In his Violet Palace Inner Realm, Xu Xiaoshou prayed devoutly to the red interface. If these 100,000 points really went to waste, it would be equivalent to losing the strength bonus of two Grandmaster-level passive skills. He still had to leave the Inner Realm and face so many dangers in the White Cave. How could he do without the auxiliary awakened skill of "Stealth"?

“Give me a chance, give me a chance...” Exchanging for another Awakening Stone, Xu Xiaoshou hesitated about which skill to bind. “Or, should I try 'Transformation'?” He was tempted. Perhaps changing the approach would make it succeed on the first try. But if calculated by probability, at this point, 'Stealth's' awakened skill should be about to appear. If he changed it now, its probability would be recalculated, wouldn't that be a massive loss?

“Take a risk, turn a bicycle into a motorbike!”

“I, Xu Xiaoshou, am fighting you to the death today!”

Gritting his teeth, he bound 'Stealth' once more, and tossed the Awakening Stone into the pool.

“Damn you all——” Xu Xiaoshou went crazy. He immediately exchanged his remaining 20,000 passive points for two Awakening Stones, simultaneously binding 'Stealth' to both, and tossed them in at the same time.

“Thud, thud.” Water splashed.

Regaining his composure, he looked at the information bar.

“Awakening Successful!”“Stealth (Awakened: Vanishing Art)!”“Second Awakening Failed!”

Xu Xiaoshou's soul instantly left his body for a full ten breaths.

“Holy crap!” The next second, accompanied by a shout of mixed surprise and joy, he burst out of the ground like a spiritual monkey emerging from the earth.

“Hahahahaha...”

“Haha, who can stop me? Between heaven and earth, I ask! Is there anyone who can stop me, Xu Xiaoshou?!”

“Hahaha——”

Yu Zhiwen looked up in shock at the crazed young man in the sky, feeling her worldview shattered and her understanding of him completely refreshed.

“Received doubt, Passive Points, 1.”

“Again, again?” Mu Zixi, already exhausted, lay flat on the ground, one hand on her forehead, too weary to complain.

“Received a curse, Passive Points, 1, 1, 1, 1...”

Xu Xiaoji...

When Senior Brother Xu laughed heavenward, how could the trembling Little Chick dare to make a fuss? He remained motionless, like a corpse.

“Received awe, Passive Points, 1.”

Xu Xiaoshou regained his senses, burrowed back into the deep pit, burying himself again, and then cautiously peered at the information bar. He was afraid he had gone mad just now and experienced hallucinations, afraid that when he became sober, everything would turn out to be an illusion. However, with one glance, three distinct messages, of varying lengths, appeared before his eyes. Clearly, Xu Xiaoshou wasn't mad. Everything he saw was not an illusion either.

“Vanishing Art?”

Before he could even begin to ponder, he winced, his face showing a look of regret. Clearly, judging by the order of the messages, his ninth awakening attempt had succeeded. That meant the 10,000 passive points from the tenth attempt were truly superfluous, completely wasted!

But... After fully sobering up, he silently stared at the line that read "Second Awakening Failed."

“Second Awakening?”

“Second...”

“In other words, this awakened skill isn't just awakened once, but can be awakened a second time?” Spending 10,000 passive points to gain new information, Xu Xiaoshou suddenly felt it wasn't a loss after all. “If there’s a second awakening, are there third, fourth, fifth awakenings?” He felt he had found another path to rapid combat power evolution.

But then he thought, one awakening could cost 100,000 passive points; given this deceptive system’s nature, a second awakening would surely cost millions, wouldn't it? “Can’t afford it, can’t afford it...” Xu Xiaoshou cautioned himself not to get carried away. At least for now, even knowing he had the qualification for a second awakening, he couldn't attempt it. Because, if he tried, other skills might not improve, but his skill at wasting money would become perfected.

His attention returned to the newly appeared awakened skill.

“Vanishing Art!” He narrowed his eyes in thought. “What does it do?”